Breakdown of Ihr gebt einem Hund das Wasser.
ein
a, an (eine)
der Hund
the dog
das Wasser
the water
ihr
you (informal plural)
geben
to give
Questions & Answers about Ihr gebt einem Hund das Wasser.
Why is it einem Hund instead of einen Hund?
Because Hund is the receiver of the action (the indirect object), so it takes the dative case. Since Hund is a masculine noun (der Hund), the indefinite article ein changes to einem in the dative case. The word einen would be the accusative form, which we'd use if the dog were the direct object being acted upon.
Why does the dog (einem Hund) come before the water (das Wasser) in the German sentence?
In German, the indirect object (the dative receiver) almost always comes before the direct object (the accusative thing being given) when both are regular nouns. So we put the receiver (einem Hund) before the object being given (das Wasser).
Does the verb geben have a vowel change here for ihr?
No. The verb geben (to give) does change its vowel for du (gibst) and er/sie/es (gibt). However, for ihr (you all), it follows the regular conjugation rule: just take the stem geb- and add -t to make gebt.
Is das Wasser in the accusative case here?
Yes! The word Wasser is the direct object because it is the thing being given. Since Wasser is a neuter noun, its definite article is das in both the nominative and accusative cases, so it looks exactly the same as its basic dictionary form.
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